Designer's Barangaroo bombshell

By Nicole Hasham

Renowned Danish urban designer Jan Gehl has quit the controversial Barangaroo project, saying he is "increasingly worried" about the development and has not been consulted for almost two years.

Professor Gehl, a world-leading public domain expert, was commissioned by the government in 2010 to ensure Barangaroo's public areas were "people-friendly".

Conflict of interests: Jan Gehl believes "concerns for the people landscape have gradually evaporated".

Photo: Ashley Bristowe

But he has withdrawn support for the project, saying economic pressures have created a "strong urge to build as much as possible" while "concerns for the people landscape have gradually evaporated".

Professor Gehl said James Packer's contentious hotel-casino is "contrary to what was needed" and his firm has not been contacted about Barangaroo since late 2011.

Documents show the government's Barangaroo Delivery Authority paid Mr Gehl's firm almost $440,000 in consultant fees over three years. However Professor Gehl said it was "difficult" to identify successes resulting from his advice, aside from moving car traffic away from the waterfront.

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Barangaroo is one of the last pieces of harbour land in Sydney that can be developed, and debate over community versus commercial use has been fraught.

The government is expected to sign off on the proposal this year, before plans are lodged detailing building heights and public domain impacts.

The proposal has drawn criticism for its location on a site mooted for a waterfront public park. Mr Packer has also sought to increase the height to 60 storeys, making it one of Sydney's tallest buildings.

The authority has repeatedly spruiked Professor Gehl's involvement, which it said would ensure public areas are "active, welcoming and dynamic places for visitors, residents and workers". It did not announce his departure, nor did it reply to his resignation email on September 18, to chief executive John Tabart.

The email, obtained by Fairfax Media, described the Barangaroo project as "compromised" and said despite repeated efforts by Professor Gehl and his team over 21 months "we have not been informed about any progress".

Professor Gehl asked for his firm's name and logo to be removed from the project.

He later said Barangaroo was in danger of becoming "another Docklands" - the maligned Melbourne waterfront redevelopment described by critics as a soulless, windswept failure dominated by skyscrapers.

A Barangaroo Delivery Authority spokeswoman said it valued Professor Gehl's contribution to the "human landscape".

"Designers offering a range of views contribute to a robust design process which leads to the best design outcomes," she said.

The spokeswoman said a workshop that Professor Gehl attended in 2011 established principles for future development at Barangaroo Central, which will be included in the precinct's master plan.

More than half of Barangaroo would be public space, she said, including a foreshore promenade along the site, the six-hectare headland park, and other areas for "relaxing, gathering and celebrating".

A spokesman for Lend Lease, which is building the $6 billion commercial end of Barangaroo including the casino, said it had assembled urban design leaders from around the world to ensure the site was ''vibrant, welcoming and inclusive''.

"Their collective expertise will help ensure that the public spaces and the visitor experiences at Barangaroo will be truly world class," he said.